


Like Stars

by kalihiro



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: M/M, Slow Burn, and prompt wants to help, i promise it will be cute and fun, i will try to make it w the least amount of angst as i can manage, iggy thinks its unrequited, it goes poorly, noct doesnt even realize his own feelings yet
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-21
Updated: 2019-06-21
Packaged: 2020-05-15 18:43:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19301599
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kalihiro/pseuds/kalihiro
Summary: What if we rewrite the stars?Say you were made to be mineNothing could keep us apartYou'd be the one I was meant to find





	Like Stars

It ached.

His chest was hot and his lungs burned from crying. His heart felt as if it was being squeezed, every beat a reminder of the pain he was feeling.

He wiped his eyes quickly, battling to keep any more tears from falling. His face was puffy and hot, the skin under his eyes raw from rubbing.

Who decided it was a good idea for a romcom to end without a confession?

"Dude… you're gonna get snot all over my couch." Noctis groaned, getting up to go grab a box of tissues for his snotty friend.

"Th-they were just so in love! And then it was OVER!?" Prompto threw himself down onto the now empty spot next to him.

"I mean… they were _almost_ together." Noctis replied.

"Almost isn't good enough! If I was her I'd have most definitely confessed back in that dressing room." Prompto continued pitching a fit over the end of the movie while Noctis resorted to sitting on the floor.

"...A dressing room confession. Really."

"Okay, maybe not there. But I would've actually done it! They're cowards I tell ya, cowards!"

"Whatever you say." Noctis sighed.

"Well what about you?" What would you ha-" The pair was interrupted by a knock on the door, followed by a harder knock and someone whisper shouting _you gotta be louder than that! Princess here will ignore ya if you're too soft._

"Food's here." Noctis hopped to his feet.

"Thank the gods. I've cried out all the salt in my body. Need. Nourishment." Prompto reached lazily towards the kitchen.

Noctis opened the door, greeted by Ignis and Gladio, both carrying a tremendous amount of bags.

"Did you guys bring the entire store?" Noctis peeked inside each bag, only finding ingredients and nothing to actually snack on.

"It would not be a proper birthday celebration without a large meal." Ignis replied, beginning to pull everything from the bags and instructing Noctis to put anything cold in the fridge until he needed it.

"What's his deal?" Gladio pointed at Prompto, the blonde still slumped over on the leather couch and sniffling.

"He didn't like how the movie _he picked_ ended."

"Mr. Ice Cold Heart over here has no feelings! He's a robot! A stone cold machine!" Prompto sat up quickly, instantly recovered from his crying session. "Oh yeah! What would you have done?"

"Me?" Noctis asked.

"Yes, you, obviously."

"Uh…" Prompto watched Gladio and Ignis in the kitchen while Noctis thought, feeling like he was watching an episode of the world's coolest cooking show.

"I dunno. I'd never, ya know, fall for someone anyways." He shrugged.

Ignis dropped an onion, sending the partially cut vegetable rolling across the wooden floors.

"Apologies. My hand slipped." Ignis picked it up and rinsed it quickly and Prompto carried on talking his ear off. But Noctis stayed staring, weirded out by how silent Ignis was and by how _Ignis actually dropped something._

The night went on, Ignis issuing orders to Gladio in the kitchen but otherwise staying silent. Prompto and Noctis continued their fun in the living room, until Prompto threw down his cards, whispered an _oh crap!_ , then grabbed Gladio and left.

"You know where they're off to?" Noctis asked, making his way into the kitchen. The smell of Ignis' cooking was always incredible. It reminded Noctis of all the nights the group had spent camping, the feeling of home that followed them everywhere simply because they were together. No matter the dish, it reminded him of the stars and the cool breeze of the beaches of Galdin Quay.

Being the prince, he could go anywhere he desired for a birthday meal. Nobody would resist making accommodations for King Regis' son. But Noctis wanted to stay here, in a small apartment all his own filled with the aroma of Ignis' cooking.

"Are you going to stay staring or offer some help? My right hand has disappeared for the moment." Ignis broke the silence.

"Yeah, sure." Noctis sighed. "So… what are you making?"

"Rice bowl and grilled barramundi." Ignis replied, a small smile on his face as Noctis' eyes lit up at the answer.

"So how can I help?"

"The fish should be done thawing by this point, so please drain the sink, remove the fish, and begin slicing it." Ignis pointed behind him with a knife, which Noctis took and began doing as he was told.

They worked in almost complete silence, the only noise their utensils on pans and cutting boards. Sometimes if Noctis breathed too loudly or sneezed, Ignis would jump, dropping whatever he was doing once more.

"Hey, Specs." Noctis piped up after he finished slicing the barramundi. "Are you like… Ya know you didn't have to come over just because it's my birthday."

"Hm?" Ignis hummed in response.

"You're just quiet."

"Ah. Apologies, I have been a bit tired recently. But I can assure you this is fine. I very much enjoy cooking after all." Ignis answered. Noctis frowned, Ignis obviously hiding something.

"I just know you probably feel it's your duty or some shit to-"

"Indeed. It is my duty to care for you, but I am here because I want to be." Ignis gave Noctis a small smile then continued working. Noctis took the hint that whatever was on Ignis' mind was not to be discussed tonight.

That wasn't totally out of the ordinary. Ignis had a habit of handling _everything_ on his own if he could, citing that it's his responsibility to care for the prince and all other duties came second. For once, he wished he could just hear Ignis say that they were _friends_ , that Noctis was not just work. He knew that wasn't the case, but… It had been a _very_ long time since he had heard it from Ignis himself.

Silence fell over them once more and Ignis took sole control of the kitchen for the remainder of the work. By the time Gladio and Prompto had returned with a very obvious cake box, the table had been set with dishes prepared and space in the middle for the dessert.

"Ta-da!" Prompto pulled the top of the box off, displaying an obviously hand decorated cake. "I'm no Iggy, but it came out pretty nice!"

"You guys did this?" Noctis leaned over, looking the cake up and down.

"Yup. Prompto's idea. He said since Ignis was making the food he wanted to do the cake. I was there to make sure he didn't burn down his house." Gladio sat down next to Ignis, the four of them all finally seated.

"Thanks." Noctis smiled softly.

"Alright, everyone. Dig in." Ignis declared. The group ate quickly and then devoured the cake just as fast. Afterwards they moved back into the living room, Prompto covering Noctis' eyes while the other two prepared his gift in front of him.

"Open!" Prompto moved, allowing Noctis to view the present. He pulled it out of the bag ㅡ a _thick_ , hand decorated scrapbook now in his hands.

"Wow…" Noctis flipped through the book, each page decorated by a different member of the group.

"All the photographs were taken by Prompto. We all took turns adding our touch." Ignis smiled softly.

"Thanks." Noctis grinned back, the slightest hint of tears brimming in his eyes.

"Hey, is the prince gonna cry?" Gladio teased.

"Sh-shut up!" Noctis kicked him, Gladio barely budging.

 

-

 

"Did you ever get back to your dad about the fireworks thing?" Prompto asked.

"Absolutely not. I didn't want anything extravagant." Noctis crossed his arms and laid down on the couch. Ignis and Gladio had taken to cleaning up the dinner mess.

"Twenty one is a milestone. An extravagant party would've been justified." Ignis joined in.

"Well… sure, I guess. But still. I prefer this." Noctis motioned tiredly to the group, yawning as he did so.

The sentiment from his father was appreciated for sure. But it just wasn't him. He didn't want a festival or fireworks dedicated to him. He wanted to lay here with his closest friends and just enjoy their company.

"But fireworks are so cool! You think he'd do it for mine?" Prompto elbowed Noctis as he spoke, earning no response from the birthday boy. "Oh! Shh!! He's asleep!" Prompto whisper shouted as he tiptoed into the kitchen.

"Gets his stomach full and then he's out, just like a baby." Gladio teased, throwing away the last of the candles and gathering his things. "Ya ready, Iggy?"

"If it would be alright, I shall leave the car to you. I'm going to make sure he rests properly." Ignis replied.

"He's 21 now. Not a toddler. You really _don't_ need to keep acting like a babysitter."

"Old habits die hard."

"I guess." Gladio shrugged. "We're off then. I'll take Prompto back. Have Princess there give ya a ride back to my place to get your car tomorrow."

"Will do. Goodnight to the both of you." Prompto and Gladio nodded as they left, leaving the sleeping prince and his caretaker alone.

Ignis walked over to the couch, kneeling down beside Noctis and brushing the hair over his eyes back gently. The light of the moon illuminated his features softly, giving an even more ethereal look to his already intriguing features. Ignis felt the heat in his chest rise as Noctis stirred, parting his lips slightly. He let his touch linger for a moment, unsure of when exactly he would get another chance to do so.

Prompto watched from a crack in the door, covering his mouth to avoid disturbing them. He wished he had decided to just wait and have Noctis bring his camera back for him, as he felt that now he'd stumbled across something secret. Something he knew he wasn't supposed to know. Something he felt he had absolutely had to meddle in.

"Noct." Ignis spoke softly, moving his hand from Noctis' cheek to his shoulder. "You should move off the couch. You will give yourself a cramp in your neck if you sleep here like that."

"Whatever." Noctis rolled over, waving Ignis off.

" **Noct**." Ignis spoke more sternly.

"Fiiiiine." Noctis groaned as he sat up. "Where are the others?"

"They left already. I told them I wanted to make sure you rested properly." Ignis answered, helping Noctis' to his feet.

"You don't have to do this, ya know." Noctis yawned again.

"Don't have to. But I want to." Ignis replied.

Prompto shut the door quietly as he watched the pair make their way into Noctis' room. He sprinted down the stairs, too impatient to wait for the elevator. Since the roof and windows were down, he, quite literally, hopped into Gladio's car.

"What the hell took you so long?" Gladio asked.

"Iggy's got a thing for Noct!" Prompto replied excitedly, to which Gladio simply raised an eyebrow in response. "Okay, so like, I went back to get my camera. And when I opened the door it was _really_ quiet, so I did it slowly and I saw Iggy like kneeling by the couch just brushing Noct's cheek!"

"That's just Iggy bein' Iggy."

"No, no! This was like…" Prompto thought about it. "He'd never do anything like to either of us. He was totally just heart eyes for a moment in there."

"I don't know. Ya know he's got that sense of duty to him. Extreme loyalty. It's more like a dog and his owner." Gladio pointed out as he pulled out of the parking lot.

"I mean it!"

"You've been watching too many movies." Gladio glanced over at him and Prompto pouted.

 

-

 

"Thanks, Specs." Noctis spoke sleepily before crashing down onto his own bed and immediately falling back asleep. Ignis pulled the covers up over him before heading out of the room.

He went out to the balcony, taking in the view of the city underneath the stars. Insomnia was a truly beautiful place with a wonderful king and an even more wonderful prince. Ignis was happy here; with his life, with his job, with his friends.

But all the happiness in the world couldn't battle the loneliness that plagued the back of his mind. The feeling of missing something despite it never being yours. The feeling of want. Of _need._ The anxiety that settled in his gut every time he thought about how he would approach this. The fear that he would lose everything he had worked so hard to build over the years.

The fear of being rejected by Noctis far outweighed it all.

 

He was happy. He was content. But he wasn't sure how much more of this he could take.

**Author's Note:**

> i have. never written anything ffxv before so i was a bit hhhh but i like it so far! im not sure how long this is going to be. im aiming for 10 chapters? but im not sure
> 
> anyways, all feedback is appreciated! i love comments very much so if theres anything u like or anything u think i could improve on, pls feel free to tell me!
> 
> [edit: i should never promise anything bc my knack for NOT updating and instead starting 40 things is insane... i am working on this tho... promise]


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